Why are burrs so malleable?

[me2]

Specifically related to high hardness Japanese knives, the couple I've had are typically very thin behind the edge. I'd recommend against any power sharpening. The initial rebeveling might take a while, but after that, a visible flat on the edge can be resharpened in as few as 15 to 20 passes per side, per grit. The thin edge can thicken very quickly if large foil type burrs are raised. Hand sharpening allows enough control to form the barest minimum of a burr and avoid having to remove those large foil burrs that area so frustrating.